Earlier this week, I spent time in conversation with some women from the church reflecting on what our earliest memories of Jesus are? Some of us reflected on songs or friends we had learned and made in Sunday school or Vacation Bible School, memories of the snack that was served.  My first memories of Jesus are always red Cool-Aid in Dixie Cups and goldfish crackers. It was the weekly snack served during Sunday School.   We also reflected on our earliest memories of Lent, Holy Week and Easter. For many of us that meant memories of Easter outfits, frilly dresses and socks, white gloves and hats.  There were those who remembered hunting for Easter Eggs or attending services with our family. Others recalled the smell of fresh baking bread for a meal on Easter afternoon.  My earliest Easter memories include picking out flowers, usually azaleas or daffodils, from our yard and bringing them to church to place on the cross outside the church.  By the time everyone filed into the sanctuary Easter morning, the cross out front of the church would end up entirely covered in flowers.  Last week, I had a chance to visit this church where I grew up, and the cross was still there, waiting to be decorated with flowers Easter morning. Those early memories anchor my faith to this day.

 Whether you have early memories of Jesus and the seasons of Easter or Lent, or if church is something relatively new for you as an adult, the Easter season is a sacred time in the life of the church.  Take time to share memories of past seasons with those you love and care about or make some new ones. Easter is a opportunity for God’s new life to be reborn in each of us. I hope you will make the most of this sacred season.